California's state budget for the current year is approximately $350 billion.
Posted by On with Kara Swisher, Checked
- Sources
- 5 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 88%
On with Kara SwisherAug 10, 2026
California's enacted 2026-27 budget, signed June 29, 2026, totals about $351.7 billion in state funds, which matches the claim's approximately $350 billion. The figure depends on the measure: General Fund spending is about $251 billion and all-funds spending including federal money is about $539 billion, but the state-funds total is the standard reading of the state budget.
This claim is about the present, so it is judged as of the day it was checked.
What was said
… So the argument that spending more gives you better results, I think, has been disproven by the facts. So I think we've just got to rein in the spending. What's really happened is the pandemic spending has got baked into the baseline. If you look at the budget this year that Newsom just signed off, it's about 350 billion. Dollars the budget that he proposed in January 2020, just before the pandemic, 220 billion. That's like a massive increase. That's my target. I would like to get the budget back to pre-pandemic levels, allowing for inflation. …
On with Kara Swisher · · from the transcriptPost →What we found
Supports. The official enacted budget detail table lists total State Funds of $351,709,797 thousand (about $351.7 billion) for 2026-27.[1]
Supports. The California budget overview (CAC) reports $351.7 billion in total spending for SB 111, the budget enacted June 29, 2026.[2]
Supports. The Senate Republican-side analysis puts total state spending at $352 billion for 2026-27, and the LAO puts total state spending at $347 billion, both close to $350 billion.[3][4]
Supports. A Hoover Institution piece also describes the budget as more than $350 billion for fiscal year 2026-27, though it is an advocacy source.[5]
Context. The LAO and Senate analysis put General Fund spending at about $251-252 billion, and all-funds spending including federal funds at about $539 billion, so the headline figure depends on which fund sources are counted.[3][4]
Sources
5 sources: 4 primary, 1 not rated
- 1California Budgetebudget.ca.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 2CAC Budget 2026-2027 CA State Budget overviewdir.ca.gov · primary source · cited for: supports
- 3Highlights and Analysis of the 2026-27 Enacted Budgetsrc.senate.ca.gov · primary source · cited for: supports, context
- 4The 2026-27 Budget Overview of the Spending Planlao.ca.gov · primary source · cited for: supports, context
- 5California’s Budget Has Ballooned—Taxes Should Nothoover.org · not rated · cited for: supports
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
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